By far, the most frequently asked question in my house is, “What’s for dinner?” Sometimes this is asked before I even get a hello. A friend of mine left me a voicemail at dinnertime recently and said, “You’re probably making a four-course dinner for your family right now.” (I was.) A neighbor, who recently started working from home, like I do asked, “Do you make dinner every night?” This kind of question kind of baffles me. Of course I make dinner every night. I eat dinner every night and I almost always make it. What do people do that DON’T?!
I know that lots of people eat out more often than we do. Heck, my own parents eat out almost every night. (Or possibly, every night.) I heard of a working mom who went out to eat with her family every night of the week. They went to all chain restaurants, and had a schedule. Something like this: Mondays, Applebees; Tuesdays, Red Robin; Wednesdays, Bob Evans; Thursdays, Chilis; Fridays, Pizza Hut; Saturdays, McDonald’s; Sundays, Old Country Buffet. The idea of this makes me sick. Think of the cost! And wouldn’t you just get so bored? I even hate it when we’re on vacation and road trips require a string of meals eaten out.
So yes, I cook. Almost every night. Sometimes I rely on frozen foods to round out a meal. Sometimes, convenience foods make it all go a little faster; items like pizza crusts, jarred sauces, pre-shredded cheeses, frozen meatballs and frozen vegetables are part of my weekly shopping list. I’m also pretty fond of the frozen biscuits and dinner rolls that allow you to pop just what you need for dinner into the oven and have them ready in less than 20 minutes.
Tonight, having been asked for the millionth time in my life that tired question, I Googled, “What’s for dinner?” and look what I found — a blog with daily recipes. What a great idea. Where do you go for dinner-time inspiration?
No inspiration here. Just a notebook full of recipes I’ve collected over the years.
Thanks for the awesome link! That is a great inspirational tool.
I’ve found the week goes better when I ask the family to each come up with one dinner they would like during the week. Sometimes it is the same old thing, but sometimes they come up with ideas that I had forgotten. And, one night is usually leftovers. Something you probably don’t have with a teenage boy in the house.
Great link. It’s added to my favorites.
I use recipezaar.com and allrecipes.com and of course thepioneerwoman.com
I hate prepackaged food, but use convenience ingredients. It’s always frozen veggies. I almost always cook unless I need to get rid of leftovers.
I love epicurious.com. Type in a random ingredient and voila! The my recipe box feature is great, and reading other user comments (more garlic, sub this, etc.) helps me avoid new recipe flubs.
I’m also a big fan of doubling recipes that freeze well (enchiladas, meat loaf, etc.) so I have a back-up on those nights when I don’t feel like cooking.
I’m guilty of buying out more often than cooking lately. Believe me – I’d love to cook more but between my husband and the daughter I don’t know who is pickier. I get so tired of making the same old stuff and then when I plan something new to cook, it’s too healthy or weird for them and I get wrinkled noses. I’m about to go on strike! Thanks for the link. I will definitely check it out just to give it one more try.
Oh! I can’t wait to click over there –
I cook every single night but I know lots of people who don’t. I know one woman who insists that her family fend for themselves every night – her kids are 12, 13 and 17. I cannot imagine not making dinner – it’s part of my job.
There was a recent Zits cartoon where the boy walks into the kitchen and says “What’s for dinner?”
The mother says, “My day was terrific, thanks for asking!”
The boy says, “When are we eating?”
The mother says, “Really? You don’t think my new haircut is too short? I appreciate the compliment”
I tried this technique on Middle Daughter, who seems to think my only function is to feed her and be able to recite the whereabouts of her mother at will. She just left the room and tried again the next day.
I’m such a cheapskate, my family has to beg me to go out to eat. It’s a grand treat when we do, even though the fanciest place we go is Red Robin, but at least everyone is usually on their best behavior!
As far as resources go, I love the Kraft Recipes website. They have great recipe ideas, along with comments from people who have tried them out already, and you can save all your favorites in your own “recipe box.” It’s why my laptop sits on my kitchen counter when I’m at home!
Uh-oh…I’m setting a bad habit. We cook dinner about twice a week. When we do, it’s healthy though…throwing together some chicken breast, plus a veggie or fruit and tossing it on the grill in the summer. We also love fajitas. With my oven on the fritz, we’ve been creative. My new favorite is the crock pot! Gotta love letting something do the cooking for you!
Here’s the next recipe I can’t wait to try:
Taco Soup
1 (16 oz) can pinto beans
1 (16 oz) can kidney beans
1 (11 oz) can niblet corn
1 (11 oz) can Rotel (original)
1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 (4 oz) can diced green chiles
1 envelope taco seasoning mix
1 envelope ranch dressing
1 lb lean ground beef
Cook meat and drain. DO NOT DRAIN CANS. Add all ingredients to a crock pot and stir. Cook on high for two hours or low for 4 hours. Garnish with sour cream, shredded cheese, chopped onions, tortilla chips or corn bread.
Thanks for the web link. I make dinner every night, and I am usually pretty uninspired. Life is hard when you have a dedicated carnivorous husband, one child who hates vegetables and another child who is a vegetarian, yet hates beans, rice, pasta, most vegetables, tofu, and most kinds of cheese (unless it comes from a box made by Kraft or a pizza). I used to be more adventurous, but now it seems kind of pointless!
I could not have expressed it better . This is a subject that is dear to my heart and I thought you covered it flawlessly. I only just started blogging as well but I’m not extremelyskilled at it yet. Would like to read more of your site and I’ll definitely return again!